British companies are more worried about Brexit than at any time since the 2016 referendum decision to leave the EU and they plan to reduce investment and hiring, a survey of chief financial officers showed on Monday.

The survey conducted by Deloitte, a financial advisory firm, found that 83% of the CFOs believed that leaving the EU would hurt Britain's long-term business environment. Only 4% said it was a good time to take on more balance sheet risk, the lowest percentage since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 which helped trigger the financial crisis.

Almost two thirds of the CFOs surveyed by Deloitte expected to cut hiring in the next three years as a result of Brexit and 47% expected to reduce capital spending.

Separately on Monday, the Confederation of British Industry, an employers group, said it expected business investment would fall by 1.3% in 2019, the biggest decline since the financial crisis, even if Britain manages to avoid a no-deal Brexit.